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Bug's Life, A (US - BD)

Gabe takes a look back at Pixar's near folly from 1998, in perfect 1080p glory...

Feature

Thank god for Cars. Without that one definitive failure I’d still have to refer to A Bug’s Life as my least favourite Pixar film when I make depressingly obsessive compulsive lists. Whew, dodged a bullet on that one. A Bug’s Life is the studio’s second weakest film, but it’s still a good time at the movies, and not the mind numbing throw-away most DreamWorks and Fox animated films are. Looking back on the film after nearly a decade away I continue to find myself stuck in the middle, but unlike the relative flop that was Cars, A Bug’s Life cannot be called boring by anyone outside of the most intellectually jaded people in the world.

Pixar movies are plenty referential, but Bug’s Life is the only direct adaptation in their collection. It’s a mixed adaptation, but it’s still pretty overtly adapted from elements of Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai and Aesop’s ‘The Ant and the Grasshopper’ fable. It’s one of the more clever adaptations of the two oft-adapted properties, but when compared to the studio’s other wildly original films (arguably The Incredibles owes more than a referential credit to the Watchmen and the Fantastic Four) even clever adaptation seems beneath expectations. Again, this complaint, or rather, ‘expression of disappointment’ is related to the expectations the studio has built for themselves over the years, so it rings a little hallow.

The two things that surprise me with this revisit are how great the action is and how unsuccessful most of the comedy is. There are far too many stupid bodily function jokes, and the characters are broad even by animation standards. The humour is relatively charming despite itself, but it’s definitely an off game for the studio. But the action is massive (relatively speaking I suppose, according to scale), and still pretty high on the studio’s achievement list, even if it doesn’t match the unmatchable The Incredibles. The film’s art design and direction also stands up over my memory’s expectations, utilizing some of the most abstract lighting schemes in the studio’s history.

Video

I still remember when A Bug’s Life made its DVD debut. It was the first Pixar movie on disc, it was the first ever direct digital transfer, it was specially formatted for both 2.35:1 widescreen and full frame, it came with every new iMac to show off screen capabilities, and it got regular rotation at every television selling store in America. I remember seeing it on the first plasma screens. What a difference eleven years makes.

Bug’s Life is old enough that it shows its age in its fine details. These days the animators can make everything look photo-realistic if they so choose, so it takes a surprising amount of adjustment to watch without using 2009 eyeballs. The natural surroundings stand up pretty well, but character animation is a bit plastic. If Bug’s Life was a new movie I probably wouldn’t be so kind, but what matters in this case is the comparative presentation, and compared to the already stunning DVD release the 1080p transfer is almost impossibly perfected. Colours are much brighter, which is especially valuable during the film’s darker scenes, as they’re lit by false bio-luminescence. The details are as sharp as the somewhat dated look allows without a hint of blocking, edge noise or enhancement, or over-modulation. There are no noise reduction artefacts or dirtied colours, and the blacks are rich and clean.

Audio

The new lossless audio track shows its mettle pretty early when the grasshoppers come for their offering. The sound of their Harley Davidson inspired wings engulf the rear channels and roar over the LFE. The early bird attack is also teeming with action, including loads of surround helicopter bits, directional effects, and a cool contrasting bird call effect, where the actual call is high pitched, but supported by a heavy bass punch. There’s also the climatic rain chase, which will give even the best big budget action epics a run for their money. The voice cast, which is probably the heaviest hitting in the studio’s history, sounds clean and consistent, and voices move throughout the channels depending on placement in a natural fashion. Randy Newman’s score, which I’m actually not a fan of, is perhaps a little low on the track, and during action scenes is overwhelmed by the sound effects, but when it really counts (like Flick’s hero theme) things are warm and clean.

Extras

New, Blu-ray exclusive extras start with a filmmaker’s roundtable (21:00 HD). The directors, writers, and producers talk mostly about how technically difficult the film was, and how important it was for the film to succeed post- Toy Story and post-independence. Fans can look forward to a brief glimpse of Toy Story and Finding Nemo in HD, footage of the actors recording, footage from the annual dramatic reading of the script, and footage from the bizarre EPK the studio made for Bug’s Life as well. The early draft is covered briefly here too, but in much more detail on the other Blu-ray exclusive ‘ A Bug’s Life—the First Draft’ (10:50 HD), with an intro from director/writer/producer John Lasseter. Dave Folley actually narrates the featurette, which is created using beautifully drawn colour storyboards, which have been slightly animated.

The special edition DVD ported extras begin with the filmmakers’ commentary, featuring co-writer/director John Lasseter, co-writer/assistant director Andrew Stanton, and editor Lee Unkrich. The track is a bit fluffy, and the stories are a bit obvious, not to mention repetitive if you’ve watched any of the other extras, but it’s still an entertaining and warm track. The tone is consistent and the runtime is filled rather thoroughly.

Under the Pre-Production banner are an assortment of featurettes, most of which feature introduction from Lasseter, Stanton and various other employees. Things begin with ‘The Fleebee Reel’ (04:20 SD), which is the aforementioned production reel the studio put together for the annual Disney ‘update’ meeting. ‘Story and Development’ (05:30 SD) is a look at the storyboarding process (adorably using storyboards), and the story pitch (using PiP). Next are three storyboard to film comparisons (13:30 SD), and two abandoned sequences (05:30 SD). This section is completed with a ‘Research Documentary’ (05:30 SD), a brief look at the macro photography tests the crew filmed to prepare for the film.

Under the Production banner are more quick featurettes. These begin with ‘Behind the Scenes of A Bug’s Life’ (03:45 SD), and ‘Voice Casting’ (04:15 SD), your basic collection of made-for-TV EPKs. ‘Early Tests’ (05:25 SD) is a little more technical tour of the first animation tests the studio put together to see if they could, in fact, achieve the then super-ambitious look they were attempting. Then, under the sub-heading of Progression Demonstration are featurettes concerning ‘Storyreel’ (04:00 SD), ‘Layout’ (03:00 SD), ‘Animation’ (03:00 SD), and ‘Shaders and Lighters’ (03:00 SD).

Next up is a featurette on the sound design, hosted by Gary Rydstrom (13:00 HD). Though a surround presentation would have been ideal, it’s still a fun comparison, using the raw folley and the final mix. Under Release are the ad and poster galleries, trailers, and ‘character interviews. Also included is Geri’s Game (04:55 HD), the Oscar nominated short that opened the film on its original release, a Disney Silly Symphony short that partially inspired the film called ‘Grasshopper and the Ants’ (08:15 with intro SD), which was originally included on the DVD as an Easter Egg, and three image galleries (HD). Perhaps the favourite among the extras are the HD Outtakes, which were originally presented after the film in tiny boxes.

Overall

A Bug’s Life just isn’t as good as the perfection we’ve come to expect from Pixar Studios, but it’s still a rousing piece of film entertainment, and stands up as a technical achievement, and surprisingly enough, as an action film. The film, which was the first ever direct digital release in the early days of DVD, looks so perfect on Blu-ray it starts to really show its age, and sounds better than most big budget shoot ‘em ups on my shelf. The extras are almost exclusively ported from the old special edition DVD release, but there are a few new additions.

* Note: The images on this page are not representative of the Blu-ray release.

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As a person into 3D animation as a career and passion, plus a lover of light and fun films, oh and not to mention a massive Pixar fan, here is my list:

Finding Nemo Wall-E Up Cars Toy Story 2 Toy Story Monsters Inc. Ratatouille The Incredibles A Bug's Life

Everyone has different tastes though. I know some who claim Ratatouille is their favorite Pixar movie, which I personally can't understand why. Or those who claim The Incredibles is their best.

My 2 sons both claim Cars as their favorite with Wall-E close behind. And perhaps that fact adds to why Cars is so far up on mine and many parent's lists. The shared enjoyment between my sons and I when we watch Cars together.

Many of these films have been replayed dozens of times in my house and all are still enjoyable.

Well, it doesn,t matter for me guys since I know that the worst of Pixar is still better than Happily Never After, The Reef, & Shrek series.

By the way, did you know that the story of ABL is similar to The Seven Samurais (or Samurai 7 anime for you who are more familiar with it). It's about a member of an often-raided-by-bandits village who goes out to ask the help of virtuous Samurais by paying them with a very little amounts of food. Only, In the bugs life, the traveler didn't get any fighters but a bunch of clowns instead. That can make a good parody.

Wall-E The Incredibles Finding Nemo Toy Story 2 Up Toy Story Ratatouille Monsters Inc. A Bug's Life Cars

And for the LOVE OF GOD can someone give an explanation as to how Finding Nemo is nothing short of amazing? I can (kind of) understand the resistance to see the Toy Story films as just OK, but Nemo is truly a great emotional journey on film.

Noted Gabe, and I'm not a fan of Heroes so I guess I'm saved on that one.

@CM seriously you didn't like Toy Story? IMO For Pixar's first full length film Toy Story is a pretty solid effort. Memorable characters, great voice cast (seriously, Tim Allen has done anything good since the TS movies). Also, I think that with the technology they had at the time, Toy Story's generic plot was really the best way to showcase Pixar's potential and it also presented to the world what you could accomplish with computer animation and kinda raised the bar as well.

To be honest I'd rank ABL higher than I would BOTH Toy Story and Toy Story 2. That movie is beyond overrated and didn't need a sequel. Cars and Ratatouille were both misses for me. I couldn't care less about those 4.

I didn't like The Incredibles purely because I thought they ripped Watchmen and never admitted it. It's a cool movie, but I could never see past it. Cars was weak IMO cuz of Larry the Cable Guy and Owen Wilson who (again, IMO) has the weakest voice for a cartoon.

I just wanted to add that Pixars UP was fantastic. Though the opening montage was fuggin heartbreaking.

ticktock wrote: The opening is misleading. "Flop"? Out of the ten Pixar films, "Cars" ranks #5 in terms of domestic gross and is BY FAR the biggest merchandiser out of all of 'em. It was my least favorite of Pixar's movie, but having a 3 year old son I've watched it upwards of 100 times now (at least 2-3 times a week) and it's grown on me. Like a previous poster said, it's obviously found incredible success with youngsters (go to Target and tell my what other Pixar movie has its own section in the toy department) and who is to argue with that. Not every movie has to be made to certain tastes.

I think Gabe was referring to the story and characters, not necessarily how much money it made. That said, when I watched "Cars", I was like 'is that it?' The voice actors were good (although casting Larry the Cable Guy as Mater seemed like a publicity stunt) and it was cute. "Cars" has a solid audience who'll no doubt flock to the sequel in 2011, but "Cars", "Finding Nemo" and "A Bug's Life" are the weakest films in Pixar's canon. (For some reason, I loathe "Bug's Life" and can't understand why so many people loved "Nemo." )

Well, I'm a HUGE Pixar fan. The Incredibles is my favorite. REALLY deserves a sequel. Ratatouille is my least favorite and I think there biggest flop. I don't think Ratatouille is at all a kid's movie, it may be animated, but is not a kid's story. Now ask any boy under 10, what they would rather watch Cars or Ratatouille, Cars is gonna win every time. I never seen Doc Hollywood and don't care if it has the same type of story. Marketing wise, Cars has beat every other Pixar film to date. Not since CARS has Target had 2 full endcaps (of merchandise from a Pixar movie) that was always a huge and is a pretty big seller today, what 3-4 years after it came out. I bet they have sold a million or more of them little matchbox type cars. I know I own about a 100 of them. Cars was huge and was by no means a flop, maybe to some, but it ain't.

I still enjoy watching a Bug's Life and plan on getting it on Blu to check it out in all it's 1080p glory. Plus it has a free UP ticket in it.

The opening is misleading. "Flop"? Out of the ten Pixar films, "Cars" ranks #5 in terms of domestic gross and is BY FAR the biggest merchandiser out of all of 'em. It was my least favorite of Pixar's movie, but having a 3 year old son I've watched it upwards of 100 times now (at least 2-3 times a week) and it's grown on me. Like a previous poster said, it's obviously found incredible success with youngsters (go to Target and tell my what other Pixar movie has its own section in the toy department) and who is to argue with that. Not every movie has to be made to certain tastes.

Flop does usually equate monetary success, I'll give you that one. But I'm still standing on definitive. Cars is the definitive Pixar failure to me. I also admit that my opening paragraph was more about finding some way to make the review interesting to write because I couldn't think of a lot to say.

The track compares favorably to Wall-E, but Wall-E has a little subtlety advantage. The ending chase is demo worthy for sure though.

Well you used both the terms "definitive failure" and "flop", which to me signifies economic success just as much as creative. And as for "Something can be a definitive failure relative to its contemporaries."... c'mon. You really can't use the term "definitive" without meaning it to be literally that. But I suppose it also is dependent on what the definition of "is" is.

It's really not a big deal, as I think everyone can agree the main point is that it's Pixar's worst to date. I only bring it up because 1/3 of the feature review is about how Cars bumped Bug's Life up a notch.

Also, how would you compare the DTS-HD track to Wall-E? That's become my demo track, but the Mrs. loves Bug's Life for whatever reason, and wants to use the Hopper-flying scenes as a demo.

I'm glad I'm not the only one that saw through Cars' rip off of Doc Hollywood (which I love -- Cars, not so much). I just could never get into Cars, but I do see it's appeal for the pre-teen set out there. A Bug's Life on the other hand I enjoy from time to time, even though I always saw it as somewhat of a rip off of The Three Amigos (which, as stated above, is in itself derivative of The Seven Samurai).

Cars was Doc Hollywood with Chevron mascots. That's unoriginal and boring. It was also really long. I've watched it twice and didn't enjoy it either time. It's a RELATIVE failure, surely, as I've made clear in the past, and yes, compared to all but a few of the Dreamworks and Fox animated properties it's a gem, but it's still a failure, especially considering John Lassiter's pedigree. It was a vanity project and he knows better. I also don't care if it makes Disney money, the Shrek series makes Dreamworks even more, and it doesn't make them any better.

Good review, i would agree with your assessment of the film too. I found this one, Cars and Ratatouille to be slightly boring, dull and not entirely re-watchable. There's just something about them that doesn't ring as well as Toy Story or even the Incredibles.

Gabe wrote: Thank god for Cars. Without that one definitive failure...

Failure? Really? I have a friend who legitimately hates Cars (seemingly) just as much as you do, and I've never looked at him the same. It may be Pixar's least satisfying flick, but it's FAR from a failure in any sense. Cars continues to be a HUGE cash cow for Disney (ask any sub-double-digit-aged boy), and it truly doesn't even come close to being as bad as some of the best Dreamworks and the like have created.

This was my least favorite Pixar movie (mainly due to only really liking Tuck and Roll out of the entire cast of characters) but then came Ratatouille, which on rewatch was just plain dull outside of one great moment.

Plus, I really dig Cars but hey, I dig Doc Hollywood too, so sort of comes with the territory

Good review...but really, stop the hate with Cars just because it's the less Pixar of them all. Anyways, this is the least of my favorite Pixars but it's still better than Nemo...a must buy for the Pixar fan.